Brush-adjusting device for suction cleaners



July 24, 1923- F. M. CASE BRUSH ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR SUCTION CLEANERS Filed July 26 1917 l giv 7 ILD Emmet s J6 Cape Patented July 24, 1923.

UNITED STATES orrice.

FRANCIS M. CASE, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE'ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE HOOVER COMPANY. OF NORTH CANTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OE OHIO.

BRUSH-ADJUSTING DEVICE FOR SUCTION CLEANERS.

Application filed July 26, 1917. Serial Iil'o. 182,870.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANCIS M. CASE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Brush-Adjusting Devices for Suction Cleaners, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in brush adjusting devices for suction cleaners. It has for one object to provide means whereby the brush in the suction nozzle of the suction cleaner may be adjusted toward and from the floor. This is particularly important because of the need of setting the brush down from time to time as the bristles wear ofi. With a rapidly rotating power driven brush the bristles do wear off and it becomes from time to time necessary to bring the brush body nearer to the carpet as otherwise the brush action will be ineffective due to the shortness of the bristles.

My invention, therefore, provides means for easily and conveniently adjusting the brush and means which will make sure that when the operator adjusts the brush it will be so adjusted that the two ends are level, thus guarding against the possibility of having the brush in an incorrect position in the nozzle. Other objects of my invention will appear from time to time in the specification.

Figure 1 is an inverted plan view of the nozzle end'ofa suction cleaner;

Figure 2 is an end elevation of the brush supporting means showing the casing in section at the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an end elevation of the brush adjusting plate;

Figure 4 is a section along the line 4-4 of Fi re 1.

ike parts are indicated by like characters in all the figures.

A is a suction cleaner housing shown here only in part. It is provided with an open suction nozzle A in which is rotatably mounted a brush A. The brush is provided with a pulley A over which passes a driving belt A drivenfrom any suitable source of power not here shown.

.The brush body is hollow. It has at either end bearing sleeves B which are preferably fixediin the hollow brush body. They are rotatably mounted upon a shaft B apertures B, B in bosses B B on adjusting washers B. These washers B* have annular rings B projecting inwardly and surrounding the end of the brush though out of contact with it. On their outer sides these washers are provided with bosses B". These bosses are on the same axial line as the center of rotation of the brush. They are each surrounded by an annular channel B. B is a slot in the boss 13 for a screwdriver.

C, C are spiral cam grooves in the outer faces of the adjusting washers. .These grooves have at certain points along their lengths depressions C C, C are supporting plates provided as at (3 with elongated slots of the same width but longer than the diameter of the bosses on the adjusting washers. These plates have projections C adapted to engage the cam slots and depressions on the faces of the adjusting washers, the

arrangement being such that as the washers rotate the center bout which the cam groove rotateswill move up or down because the projections engaging the cam grooves will as the washer rotates insure this movement. The supporting plates have ears C which act as stops to prevent the brush device from being too far forced into the hood and to compel it to come always to the same relative position. They serve also as a handle by means of which the brush and its associated parts can be easily removed from the hood. The washer is held in different adusting positions by the engagement of the projections with the depressions in the bottom of the cam groove and there is sufiicient play to permit the projections to leave the depressions in the bottom of the grooves and still not leave the grooves. Since the washers are mounted on the shaft one washer when rotated will cause the rotation of the other and thus both ends of the brush will be equally adjusted. The holding plates are held together by a cross bar C which rests against the inside front wall of the suction nozzle. lit is more or less elastic in its action so that the parts may be sprung into position and the brush supporting device be held normally together as a unit. Thisunit may be placed in or withdrawn from the open mouth of the brush, being held in position by the spring fingers G which engage lock pins C on the inside of the nozzle.

D D are a series of guard or protecting till fingers mounted in integral clips or lugs D on the cross bar 0 These fingers extend in the plane of the open mouth of the nozzle beneath the brush being bent up at their rear ends at D into substantial conformity with the path of the ends of the bristles of the brush whereby the brush as it rotates in the direction indicated by the arrow in Figure2 will tend to prevent movement of foreign matter along the fingers toward the front even though the movement of the machine itself may be reversed. These guard fingers it will be noted, divide the open mouth into a series of transverse openings joined by a longitudinal openin at the rear.

It will be evident that while have shown in my drawings an operative device, still many changes might be made both in size, shape and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit of m invention and I wish, therefore, that my rawings be regarded as in a sense diagrammatic.

It will also be observed that the brush adjusting cam device is also the thread guard for the end of brush, the two functions bein erformed by one and the same structure.

The use and operation of my invention are as follows 2- The apparatus shown in Figure 1. is ready for operation as a suction cleaner. If the operator wishes to adjust the height of the brush in the open mouth of the hood he first releases the belt from its driving pulley and he then releases the spring latch fingers and then taking hold of the ears shown on either side of the open mouth he rotates the whole brush assembly upwardly until the holding spring fingers are disengaged from the open mouth, whereupon he can lift the brush and its ssociated parts from the mouth. With the brush and supporting parts removed from the nozzle there is spring enough in the metal to permit the adjusting washers to be rotated. This can be done by means of a screw driver preferably inserted in the slot in the end of the boss on the adjustin washer. The two washers turn together and the projections on the supporting plate travel in the grooves and drop into the depressions in t e bottom of the grooves on the adjusting washers. The associated cross bar holds the supporting plates in the proper position with relation to .each other and yieldingl toward each other so that the brush an its adjusting plates are held yieldingly between the two supporting plates. The rotation of the adjusting plates in the manner suggested obviously causes the brush. to move vertically with respect to the supporting plates and if the parts are properly proportioned the two ends of the brush will be held so that the brush will always have the proper parallelism with respect to the parts with which it is associated for the projections on the plates will always drop into corresponding depressions on the adjusting washers.

The arrangement is such that the parts cannot be sprung apart to effect this ad- 'ustment when they are within the. casing.

hen, however, the brush and its associated parts are removed from the casing then the parts can be operated-to effect the adjustment and the brush will then be returned to the casing its new adjustment being that which the operator .requires. p,

' The presence of the frame and guard fingers and associated parts furnishes the operator with a guide to determine how much of an adjustment to make.

I claim 1. In a suction cleaner a brush, a shaft upon which it is rotatably mounted, an adjusting plate fixed on each end of the shaft,

supports for said plates and means responsive to a rotation of said plates for changing the height of the brush said means comprising a cam groove and a member engaging it.

2. In a suction cleaner a brush in combination with a support member at one end of the brush and a frame member at the same end of the brush, the support and frame piece held rotatably and slidably together, and positive interlocking devices comprising a projection on one member, a recess on the other member, the projection adapted to be received in the recess to look the frame and support on said members adapted when the support and frame are moved with reference to each other to cause-one of them to slide on the other to adjust the height of the brush.

3. In a suction cleaner a brush in combination with a support member at one end of the brush and a frame member at the same end of the brush, the support and frame piece held rotatably and slidably together, and positive interlocking devices on said members adapted when the support and frame are moved with reference to each other to cause one of them to slide on the other to adjust the height of the brush, said interlocking devices comprising a cam on one part and an engaging member on the other.

4. In a suction cleaner a brush in combinationwith a support at one end of the brush and a frame piece at the same end of the brush, the support and frame piece held rotatably and slidably together, and interlocking devices on them adapted when the support and frame are moved with reference to each other to cause one of them to slide on the other to adjust the height of the brush, said interlocking devices held in yield mg engagement, and a hood which encloses the parts and holds the interlocking devices rigidly together.

5. In a suction cleaner a brush in combination with a support at one end of the brush and a frame piece at the same end of the brush, the support and frame piece held rotatably and slidably together, and interlocking devices on them adapted when the support and frame are moved with reference to each other to cause one of them to slide on the other to adjust the height of the brush, said interlocking devices comprising a cam on one part and an engaging member on the other held in yielding engagement, and a hood which encloses the parts and holds the interlocking devices together.

6. In a suction-cleaner a brush, a shaft upon which it is rotatably mounted, an adjusting plate on each end of the shaft. supports for said plates, said supports provided with vertical guides, the shaft ends movable in said vertical guides, said adjusting plates and supports having interlocking members including a cam adapted by the rotation of the adjusting plate to vertically change the height of the brush.

7. A supporting device comprising a housing and supporting plate members detachably fixed thereto, and a brush holding member rotatably mounted with respect to such plate member, one of said members being resilient, one of said members being provided with a projection and the other with a cam groove receiving such projection.

8. A supporting device comprising a housing and supporting plate member, a brush holding member, one of said members being resilient and provided with a projecting lug, and the other of said members being provided with a cam groove and spaced depressions,-such cam groove and lug reacting upon relative rotation of the members to move one of said members bodily with respect to the other, and said lug and depressions reacting to lock the members in different predetermined positions.

In testimony whereof ll aflix my signature this 18th day of July, 1917.

FRANCIS M. CASE. 

